The Answer is Yes
by watashi wa kyo2
Summary: Tensions are high as one of the team starts acting strange, well, stranger than usual. The trust that binds them is coming unraveled. Will the team figure out the truth or will they continue to be tricked? Tony-centric but also features the entire team even Fury. rated T because I feel like it.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: This one is kinda sorta long. I have finished it already but I may change my mind on some stuff so it will not be posted day to day, more like week to week soooo yeah. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers no matter how many times I asked Santa for them. "sigh"**

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The rain was pouring down from the heavens right over New York, and Stark Tower was smack down in the middle.

The lightning ripped across the sky, lighting the dark room at the top of the building. Inside the pent house stood Tony Stark at the bar, downing another glass of his favorite alcohol.

"How did it go so wrong?" he asked to no one.

"We were a team, we trusted each other, or at least, I thought we did." He said out loud again to the empty room.

An angry look came upon his features as he recalled the last mission the Avengers had been on.

In his sudden rage Tony threw his glass against the wall across the room. As the shards of glass fell to the floor Tony became lost in his memories of that last mission, and the consequences.

He was so overtaken by the memories he barely even noticed when he leaned back against the bar and slid to the cold floor.

**~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~**

"Uh! This place is sooo boring. I think I'm going to hop off this helicarrier and go find some real fun." Whined Tony as he stood up from sitting in the lab with Steve and Bruce.

"Tony, how many times do I have to tell you we have to stay here? We're on high alert since Loki escaped last week." Steve said in an irritated tone.

"Why can't you just stop complaining and try to get some work done like the rest of us?" Steve muttered under his breath though not quiet enough for Tony not to hear.

"Oh that's what you guys are doing. I thought you were just lurking around to ruin my life." Tony said sarcastically as he walked toward the door of the lab.

"Well, since I'm a civilian, your orders don't apply to me so see yah later alligator!" Tony shouted just as he left the lab heading toward the Avengers equipment room that held all the Avengers stuff, or as Tony liked to call it the "armory".

Just as Tony entered the room Steve raced in behind him and said, "Tony you can't just leave. You're part of this team too. If Loki shows up, we all need to be ready to go, not all of us minus one."

"Oh don't get your panties in a twist. I'll just be gone for like five minutes to get some fresh air. No need to be worried boy scout." Tony replied smugly before standing on his suit assembly platform and started the process of putting on the Iron Man suit.

Steve stood there with a very much less than happy look on his face as Tony finished putting on the suit and opened the hanger to fly out.

"Tony! You need to stop acting like you're a one man show. We're a team, so act like a team member!"

Steve's shout rang out just as Tony powered up his thrusters.

"Steve, I can't hear you over the sound of freedom calling! Toodles!" Tony yelled.

And with that he shot out of the hanger into the bright blue sky and disappeared from Steve's sight.

**~PRESENT~PRESENT~PRESENT~PRESENT~PRESENT~PRESENT~PRESENT~PRESENT~PRESENT~PRESENT~**

The clock in Stark Tower flickered to 12:00 am and it was still raining as the thunderstorm continued to beat down on the poor inhabitants of New York.

Tony was still on the floor against the bar, lost in recollections.

**~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~PAST~**

Tony located a nice quiet spot overlooking a lake somewhere in Canada, since the helicarrier was flying over it on its way back to Manhattan.

He really did need some fresh air after being cooped up in Shield's flying headquarters ever since Loki escaped.

For someone like Tony, who never liked to stay in one place for long, it was a living hell plus extra with him being stuck with Fury and his lackeys for company.

Staring into the water, Tony looked at his reflection with a mixture of pride and shame.

Pride because of how much he had accomplished with his suit and the people he had managed to help with is.

Shame with Steve's harsh words that floated into his brain.

"Big man in a suit of armor, take that away and what are you?"

The remark had bothered him more than he would like to admit. What was he without his armor?

Sure, he was all the things he told Steve, but did they really matter that much?

Was he just a weak, lonely little man without his suit?

"Yes, that's exactly what you are." A cold and sinister voice said behind Tony.

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**Press the button. You know you want to. **

**Anyway, I might be posting this every Friday maybe Saturday, I have not decided, so enjoy the suspense!**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Was going to update yesterday but time got away from me, so here's chapter 2! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers and if I did it would be named Iron Man and friends**

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"_Big man in a suit of armor, take that away and what are you?" The remark had bothered him more than he would like to admit. What was he without his armor? Sure he was all the things he told Steve, but did they really matter that much? Was he just a weak, lonely, little man without his suit? "Yes, that's exactly what you are." A cold and sinister voice said behind Tony._

In the water, Loki's face appeared behind the reflection of Iron Man. Tony jumped and turned around quickly, suspicious of Loki's motives.

"What do you mean 'that's what I am'?" Tony said, attempting to hide the panic in his voice.

_Great. Thor's psycho brother just had to show up when I'm without backup. _Tony's thoughts were interrupted by the man in question.

"What you were thinking. You are a weak little mortal without your suit. Every word of it was true."

Loki's nonchalant words caused Tony's heart to clench.

_He's just trying to get in your head. Being the god of lies and all makes him an expert at lying._

"True, I am the god of lies _and_ mischief but some part of every lie has truth to it. So which part of my statements was true and which was false?"

"How did you-?"

"Read your mind? Well that is for me to know and you not to find out."

Looking around, Loki seemed as if he expected to see someone else there.

"So where are your Avenger friends? Or are they your friends at all? I have listened to their thoughts and they see you as a weak link, an ally who can be easily broken. Who would waste a friendship on that?"

The bait was there and Tony couldn't help but fall for it.

"They are my friends. You're just lying again." Tony hoped he sounded confident because he was anything but.

_If there is some truth behind every lie then _

"Which, again, holds that truth? The entirety of it." A devilish smile erupted on Loki's face.

"Why don't you just shut-up?" Tony lunged at Loki with the intent of giving him a well-deserved punch to the face.

Just as his fist made contact instead of feeling the satisfaction of hitting flesh it felt air as it went straight through Loki. Imbedding his hand in an oak tree behind Loki, Tony almost pulled the whole tree down when he extracted the hand.

Loki's laughter assaulted Tony's ears.

"You guys will honestly never stop falling for that trick." Loki's chuckles continued but Tony was anything but amused.

Firing up his repulsors Tony blasted two shots at Loki. The Asgardian pulled his staff out of nowhere and blocked the shots.

Energy started to accumulate in the staff and Loki had that devilish grin on his face once more.

"My turn." Loki shot his own blasts at Tony only to have Iron Man fly over the spheres.

Sending a whole barrage of repulses at Loki, Tony decided he may need a little help. As the son of Laufey dodged and blocked Tony called upon his A.I.

"Jarvis! Get ahold of Fury. Tell them I found their missing prisoner and I would like them to come pick him up."

"Shall I inform them of your current conflict with him, sir?"

Loki was now done with Tony's attack but made no move to retaliate. He was just standing there waiting.

_For what?_ Tony wondered but now was not the time to speculate.

"I don't care Jarvis, just tell them Loki is here!" Tony said to the A.I. as he hovered in air.

_Now it's my turn to bait you._

"Tired already Loki? Prison must not have been good to you." Tony smirked as he said it, lowering the suit to the ground.

"Now why don't you surrender and maybe we can compromise. I might be able to convince them to give you a green prison uniform complete with a matching underwear set. What do you say?"

Tony walked forward as he said it gesturing with his hands in a peaceful, friendly manner.

The Asgardian looked disgusted. "You think I am afraid of you or the fact that Thor and the rest of your pitiful excuse for a team are coming? They won't be worried of capturing me when their hands are going to be full with you."

_That's what he says now. When Thor hammer times him it will be me who's laughing._

"You see Stark, I was never here, or at least to them I won't have been." To them this will be a joke that you are playing on them."

Tony paused in his walk towards Loki.

"Like that would happen, there is obvious evidence you were here and I've recorded this whole little meeting. Try hiding all of that."

With a flick of his staff Loki reversed all the damage to the forest from their battle and even made his footprints vanish.

_I guess that was the equivalent of an Asgardian's 'challenge accepted'._

"Whoop-dee-doo, you can't just make my memory or the recording go away." But Tony was starting to worry as warning flags started going off in his brain.

"Oh but I can. You see Tony, can I call you Tony, from the moment you saw my reflection in that lake you have been under a strong hypnosis-."

Tony stopped listening after the word "hypnosis" and lunged at Loki but the god predicted the move. A bright purple energy orb flew out of Loki's scepter and into to Tony.

As he fell to the ground and darkness started closing in fast Tony felt a weird sensation at the base of his skull. He thought nothing of it as unconsciousness claimed him but the tingling was in all actuality magic.

In the distance a flying hunk of metal came closer to the very spot where the fallen hero lay, only he was alone.

Loki had vanished.

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**Thanks for reading! Please review!**

**Will update next Friday/Saturday. Maybe even earlier if I have time**


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: What do you know! I updated early. I will still be updating Friday/Saturday so don't worry. Thank you all who have favorite/followed/reviewed! I really appreciate it.**

**Disclaimer: I don't always own the Avengers, but when I do, I don't. **

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Tony regained consciousness just one minute after Loki blasted him. He opened his eyes and blinked blearily.

Picking himself off the ground, Tony inspected himself for damage. His armor wasn't even dented from Loki's attack.

_Well that's odd. I would've thought if it knocked me out it should have left some kind of mark. Huh._

Tony glanced around, looking for the son of a Laufey himself.

_Annnnnnd Loki left while I was out. Figures. _

Suddenly, a large hunk of metal that was floating in the sky came into view.

_Of course Fury shows up right on time. Life sucks sometimes._

Readying himself, Tony shot into the air, flying towards the helicarrier.

"Stark! Where is Loki?" Fury said over the comm.

Tony flew right in front of the giant window that allows Shield to see when flying. He stared straight at Fury.

"Uhhh…. Loki who?" Tony joked but no one was smiling.

"Why do I get the feeling I'm not going to like this?" Fury muttered over the comm.

Deciding to go with the truth, for once, Tony opened his mouth to explain but the words came out wrong. Completely wrong.

"Well, you see Nicky, Loki was never here. I was just joking, which is what happens when you make me stay on the helicarrier with your goons. I really didn't think you would bring the whole fleet but I guess it can't be helped now."

Finishing his rebellious speech Tony was internally screaming.

_Why did I say that? That's not true! _

It got much worse for him when his body involuntarily turned off the comm and flew into the hanger. The suit landed on the platform as it sprung to life and started removing the armor from the billionaire's body.

_What is going on!? I must be dreaming._

His rogue body walked off the platform, once out of the suit, and sat down next to it with a smug look on his face.

_Wait a second, this must be Loki's 'I hypnotized you and shot you with magic' stuff. I bet he put some stupid curse on me. Great._

Tony's thoughts were cut short as Fury, Steve, Clint, Natasha, and Thor all marched in looking rather annoyed and maybe even a little, scratch that, a lot, angry.

They all seemed to start talking at once. Each statement hurting Tony a little bit.

"Tony, how could you be so st-"

"Do you ever grow up-"

"That's what you call a joke-"

"How could you lie about something like-"

"Enough! Everyone out right now but Mr. Stark." Fury shouted.

Steve hesitated to leave but followed the other three Avengers out, casting a disappointed and angry glance at Tony as he left.

Now only Fury and Tony were in the room. The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife as the silence stretched into minutes.

Finally Fury spoke.

"I had to convince a lot of people to allow you on this team. I told them you were a changed man and would quit being so childish. Apparently I was wrong."

Tony felt a pang of hurt echo through his heart. Fury's words made him feel unwanted even though he knew this was all Loki's doing.

"You're not to join the team on missions, and if you so much as touch your suit, I will have them seized. Do you understand?"

The smirk on Tony's face just grew bigger as whatever abra kadabra Loki did continued to do its worst.

"How does this joke warrant such a …uh… punishment? All I did was give you guys a little scare. It's not like I killed somebody."

Fury was apparently irritated by this response as he started pacing in front of Tony.

"And what about next time? Are you going to "see" a missile heading for DC? A bullet heading for a teammate? Dr. Banner turning into the Hulk?"

Fury barely paused as he continued his rant.

"You are like the boy who cried wolf. You're going to convince people of your "jokes" too many times and the moment you are telling the truth, no one is going to listen. They won't stop the missile. They won't dodge the bullet. Dr. Banner won't be helped before he destroys a whole city. You're a danger out there. Until you figure this out and get you act together, you're benched."

Fury stopped pacing and looked at Tony who stood up from his seat on the ground. Trying to explain about the mishap Tony opened his mouth, but it had a mind of its own.

"Without me, this "team" of yours will fall to pieces and lose every battle. You'll see." The smirk was back with a vengeance as Tony strutted out of the room only to stop in the doorway.

"Oh, and Fury, I do understand. Perfectly." And then he left.

_No! Don't say that. Urggh. Loki has me as his puppet. This is just like what he did with Clint but… they didn't know they were being controlled until after, right?_

Tony tried with all his might to control his body but it didn't so much as falter. It continued to walk down the hallways like a newly crowned king instead of the demoted hero he was.

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**Please Review! **


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Sorry about the delay. Internet problems at my house but we fixed them as fast as we could. Thanks for the reviews and follows! They make me smile.**

**Disclaimer: One does not simply own the Avengers. (AKA they are not mine)**

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_Tony tried with all his might to control his body but it didn't so much as falter. It continued to walk down the hallways like a newly crowned king instead of the demoted hero he was._

Not even looking back to see Fury's angry face Tony walked to the lab which, not surprisingly, held the rest of the team.

As he went over to a chair and sat down in front of one of the touch screens Steve stiffly walked straight in front of Tony making Tony only be able to see him.

"What in this world was that Tony? Is this how you see what our team does? As a joke? You're a danger to our team like this. I can't believe you would be so immature around something so important."

Steve's rant was continued by Clint.

"I can. He's been nothing but jokes. The guy can't take anything seriously. It was only a matter of time before it started to affect the team negatively. So this wasn't much of a surprise."

Clint practically spat out the word "surprise" as he stared at Tony's sitting form.

"I agree with Clint." Natasha said coldly, making it clear that was all she had to say.

"Friend Tony, I stand with Steve Rogers. Loki must be found before he hurts more of the people on Midgard. Your idea of amusement has only delayed our quest and given Loki more time to best us."

Thor looked like he wanted to add something else but he thought better of it. Only one person had not spoken their piece on the matter and all eyes migrated toward the doctor.

Their stares were begging Bruce to take a side since he was the only one who had a chance of convincing Tony that what he did was wrong.

"I don't know what to think. Just leave me out of this, alright." Bruce said, feeling uncomfortable with all the attention on him. He looked down at the notes in his hands as if praying that his cop out answer would suffice.

Lucky for Bruce it did as the attention turned back to the accused.

"Well Tony, do you have anything to say for yourself?" Steve asked still blocking the billionaire's view of the screen.

"Only that I did nothing wrong and you guys did have it coming." Tony replied as he pulled out his phone and started playing with it.

"Unbelievable." Clint muttered as he stalked out of the room with Natasha behind him. Thor followed too after a moment. Now the lab only had Tony, Bruce, and Steve within it.

"And they said you were a genius. You really are nothing like the honorable man Howard was." Steve whispered as he left the lab.

With just the two of them in the lab, Bruce made his move.

"Tony, what were you thinking?" The doctor calmly asked, not even looking up from his notes.

After a panicky hour of trying to regain his bodily functions Tony finally felt like he regained some. Testing it out he opened his mouth to speak.

"It's all a lie, Bruce." Tony's heart leapt for joy as his lips and vocal cords listened to him and not the curse of a spell. Though it was only his speech that he could control, it was a start.

"Loki really was there, and he cast some sort of spell or hypnosis that doesn't let me control myself."

Tony wasn't even trying to hide the hysteria that was coming through his voice.

"_I_ haven't been saying anything up to this point."

Though Tony was still freaking out on the inside, he felt a small bit of hope form.

_If I can tell Bruce then maybe this means the spell is wearing off._

Tony's glimmer of hope faded when his body rose up from the seat without his command.

Bruce had been looking at his notes this entire time and was just about to glance up in shock at Tony's words. But what Bruce saw was something different entirely.

Two hands came out of nowhere and were now gripping Bruce's throat, squeezing the life out of him.

Tony knew what would happen if his body kept this up and he tried with all the power within him to break the hold of Loki's trickery.

It didn't work.

"I can't stop Bruce! It won't let me!" Tony shouted as Bruce's eyes and skin started to turn green.

In a matter of seconds Bruce transformed into the Hulk. And needless to say, he was mad.

The Hulk grabbed Tony and flung him across the room into a wall. Stomping over to the now limp body of Tony, the Hulk grabbed his leg and hung him upside-down.

Putting the unconscious man's head level with the Hulk's face, the green creature let loose a roar. He then dropped Tony and smashed a hole in the wall and ran out.

Hulk's roar was heard all throughout the ship, and the rest of the Avengers rushed back to the lab. The sight that met them was horrifying.

Tony was lying in a bloody heap on the floor in a room full of destruction. Steve was the first one to reach him, cradling Tony's head in his arms as he checked for a pulse.

A sigh of relief escaped him when he found one. He glanced up at Natasha and nodded to her.

"We need a medic in here!" She shouted down the hall.

"You guys go after the Hulk, I'll stay with Tony." Steve ordered and watched as Natasha, Clint, and Thor ran through the gaping hole in the wall.

Steve returned his attention to the fallen hero while he waited for the medics.

"Tony! Come on, wake up!"

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**Please Review!**

**To add to the wait I also gave you a mini cliffhanger. **

**( I was planning on leaving it off when Tony was choking Bruce but that would be too cruel and too short!) **


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Hey! Here's the next chapter. I hope you guys like it. **

**Disclaimer: My _precious _Avengers were taken from me by a Baggins soooo... they are not mine.**

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"_Tony! Come on, wake up!"_

Lucky for Steve, the billionaire decided to oblige.

"Huh…?" Tony's eyes weren't even open but the small noise that came from his mouth was enough to cause Steve to sigh in relief.

"Welcome back Tony. Can you open your eyes for me?" Steve encouraged hoping to keep Tony awake until the medics got there.

"Wha' happen'd?" Tony said groggily as his eyes fluttered open. His lip was split and blood was pouring a bit into his mouth and down his face.

"We were hoping you could tell us." Steve said, but in the back of his mind he was begging the medics to show up.

"Bruce 'ulk-out?" Tony guessed, praying that it wasn't true.

_Could I really have caused this? Please let it have been a dream. _

Tony's sluggish thoughts were blocking Steve's voice out completely.

"Tony? Tony!" Steve's shouts finally registered in Tony's brain as he realized he had just zoned out.

"Wha'?" Tony replied gaining another sigh of relief from Steve.

"I need you to stay awake until the medics get here, Tony." Steve said in his 'I'm in charge' voice.

" 'Kay Cap. I'll try."

The words were almost inaudible as Tony's eyes slipped shut. Thankfully the medical team _finally _rushed into the room and started assessing Tony's injuries.

After Steve was sure Tony was in safe hands, he ran into the hole in the wall to find the Hulk.

Meanwhile, Thor had found the Hulk and was engaging him in battle. He felt a sense of déjà vu as he continued to whack the Hulk with his hammer.

The three Avengers who had set out to find their rampant teammate had split up once they got to the lower levels of the helicarrier. The Hulk had left so many paths of destruction it was impossible to tell which was the most recent.

Obviously Thor's choice was the correct one.

Thor threw his hammer and it smashed into the green monster, sweeping him off his feet. Thor had this feeling that the Hulk would attempt to pick up the Asgardian weapon up again.

As if on cue, the Hulk got his bearings and put his massive hands around the hilt of Mjölnir. Straining and straining, this time, he actually managed to pick it up.

Using both hands, the Hulk raised it above his head and threw it straight into Thor. The impact forced Thor into several boxes full of SHIELD equipment.

Before he could regain his footing, the Hulk was racing at him but an exploding arrow to the face stopped him.

With the Hulk now focused on the newly arrived Hawkeye, Thor grabbed his hammer and jumped to his feet. In two giant steps Thor was behind the Hulk, who was still trying to punch Clint, and swung Mjölnir with all his might into the back of the Hulk's head.

This seemed to do the trick as the Hulk slumped forward and fell to the floor, transforming back to Bruce as he landed.

Natasha and Steve ran into the room just in time to see Thor hit the Hulk.

"A med team is on their way for Bruce. Are either of you injured?" Steve asked while he walked over to Bruce's unconscious form.

"I am fine." Thor stated with Hawkeye nodding in agreement.

"How is Stark?" Natasha inquired just when the med team arrived.

The medics put Bruce on a gurney and rolled him out to take him to the infirmary. Thor did just basically give the big guy a concussion, who knows how it would affect Bruce.

"He's not doing too well. He passed out when the medical team got there. After they took him off to the infirmary I went after you guys." Steve supplied.

"Let's go check on him. Make sure he doesn't have brain damage or something." Clint piped, surprising the rest of the group. Clint noticed.

"What? I don't hate the guy, just his stupid ideas of entertainment. Besides, isn't this punishment enough for what he did, not even counting what Fury gave him?" Clint exclaimed, using only one breath.

Getting over their shock, the team nodded and started off to go check on their fallen teammates.

Only minutes later they were sitting between their friends in their hospital room.

Tony was hooked up to several machines and an oxygen mask. Steve tried to decipher his medical chart but only understood a few of the medical terms. Natasha snatched the chart from Steve's hands and read it herself.

"Well, he has a concussion, along with severe bruising on his back and torso. His tibia, leg for the rest of you, is broken, and he has two broken ribs and a cracked one. His arc reactor also took some damage but they replaced it." Natasha finished, putting the chart back.

They realized it could have been a lot worse. Fury picked this moment to walk into the room. After looking over the battered form of Tony and glancing at the sleeping Bruce he turned on one of the touch screen consoles.

It was when Fury was bringing up the video files that Steve voiced his, and the rest of the team's, curiosity.

"Sir, what are you doing?"

"I want to know what happened, and why. Banner doesn't transform for nothing. Tony was the only one in the room with him, so, I want to know." Fury said as he pulled up the video from the lab.

The video began when the team was chewing out Tony. When it got to the part where Tony and Bruce were the only ones left, the sound suddenly shut off along with most of the cameras.

Only one camera was left and the view wasn't so good. Tony's back was to the camera but they could see Bruce completely.

Fury tried to fix it but nothing was working. If he re-winded the cameras and the sound would come back, but once it got to that moment they would shut off again.

"Stark must have done something. Was he playing with his phone or a tablet?"

"Yeah. He was messing with his phone while we were talking." Steve said.

"Well then, we won't be getting any of that footage from the other cameras so this will have to do." Fury muttered but his eyes flickered over to the billionaire suspiciously.

They restarted the video and watched the scene play out. As much as they wanted to know what Tony was saying, they couldn't but nothing could have prepared them for the shock they felt when they saw Tony choke Bruce.

Each person was thinking along the lines of: _What just happened?_

They were brought back to reality with the sound of someone behind them groaning.

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**Please Review**

**Who woke up? **

**Is it Bruce, the only person who can vouch for Tony? Or is it Tony?**

**Not as bad as last time for a cliffhanger! :)**

**(It's snowing!)**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Hey guys! I know I said this story was finished but I did decide to change the ending, so now, it will be longer. Anywho here's the next chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers. :(**

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_They were brought back to reality with the sound of someone behind them groaning._

They turned around just in time to see Tony's eyes open. From Tony's point of view, everyone in the room looked like they were ready to kill him.

This realization must have manifested onto his face because all of the sudden Steve's eyes widened and he quickly asked of Tony's health.

"How are you feeling?"

Steve sent glares to the other members of the team, trying to will them to cool down for a moment. Tony removed the oxygen mask to reply.

"Like I got run over by a Humvee."

Tony's almost inaudible answer wasn't surprising. It would probably feel better to be run over by a Humvee instead of the Hulk.

"Do you remember why Bruce hulked out?" Steve asked calmly.

The confusion that migrated across Tony's face was unexpected, but for Tony, it only confirmed his worse fears.

Tony could remember perfectly what had happened, but Loki's spell still held, and thus, confusion was splattered across his face. It was guilt, however, that was struggling to be shown.

"I don't remember a single thing. The last I remember is all you guys chewing me out and then leaving. That is what happened, right?"

His question gained no reply as Fury let loose his frustration.

"Well apparently he's not only an egotistical idiot, but also an amnesiac too. Stark, what am I going to do with you? The only person on this helicarrier who even likes you, was just choked by you and forced to Hulk-out-"

"What?" Tony's cry interrupted the lecture and caused Fury to focus his beady eyes on what he saw as the cause of all his problems.

"That's right, Stark. You finally got Banner to release the Hulk, congratulations." Sarcasm was dripping from Fury's statement.

"You're joking. There's no way I did that to Bruce! We're friends, teammates."

The desperation in Tony's Loki-a-fied voice was very convincing, but Fury wouldn't have it. Pulling the video screen into view, Fury replayed the security footage.

"See for yourself, hot-shot." Fury spat out as he left the room with Clint and Natasha in tow.

After the video clip ended Tony wanted to die on the inside, but Loki was quite content with keeping him alive, for now.

"Tony, I know this is a bit mind boggling but-"

"Mind boggling!? This is insane! A frame up of some sort. There's no way I attacked Bruce!" Tony's protests were only making the situation worse.

"I don't know what I believe anymore Tony. Between this and your little joke, you're in a bad position. I wish I could believe you but we have it on video."

Steve's disappointed voice made Tony scream even louder in his head where he was trapped.

_When I see Loki, I'm going to kill him. _Tony thought, but while he was tied up in his mind, Steve and Thor left the room.

Now, much like earlier in the lab, it was just Tony and Bruce left in the room. Tony just sat there, watching Bruce's chest rise and fall.

If Tony had been at the top of his game he might have noticed how long it was taking Bruce to recover, or the fact that there seemed to be a light greenish glow hovering in the creases of his eyes. But Tony wasn't at his best, and so he didn't notice.

'_Well, wasn't that splendid?' _a sinister voice whispered in Tony's head.

It was so unexpected that Tony jumped.

"Who's there?" he said, searching the room but to no avail.

'_Why Tony, I'm hurt. You don't even recognize my voice. Hmmm… maybe an image will jog your memory.'_

All of the sudden a picture of Loki manifested itself into Tony's mind.

"Loki, I should have known! Get out of my head!" Tony cried, sitting up in the hospital bed despite the pain.

'_Quiet down, we wouldn't want to alert Fury or wake Bruce, now would we?' _

Loki's whisper sent a ripple of fear down Tony's spine, especially when he couldn't respond. A projection of Loki formed in between Bruce's and Tony's hospital beds.

"That's better." Loki sneered as his projection walked over to Bruce's sleeping form.

"It's rather a pity that I cannot control this man with that beast. If it was just a bit weaker I would be controlling him and not you right now."

The Asgardian ran his finger over the doctor's face and Tony felt an angry look flicker onto his countenance.

"Oh, don't worry, I can't do anything to him whilst in this form. You see, under this hypnotic state, what you see is not really there in the real world. I am currently resident in your mortal mind and thus the possibilities are endless. Of course, attacking the mortal that holds the monster was just the beginning. A test run, if you will. The real fun has yet to start."

At the final word Loki's image vanished, but not before sending more green smoke into the sleeping man's mouth.

'_When I said I couldn't do anything to him I was lying. I had already put a mild sleeping spell on him, this one will not allow him to wake up for quite a bit of time.'_

Tony sat stiffly in his bed and felt the tendrils of despair take over him.

_How am I going to fix this? _He kept asking himself over and over only to get a reply, that sounded a lot like Steve, saying, _not everything is fixable. _

He let the despair take hold and his body shook as he wept. The hot tears dripped down his face as the sheer magnitude of the situation he was in made itself known.

What Tony didn't realize, is that while he may be crying on the inside, the tears on the outside were not coming from what a bystander would deem as grief.

Oh no, Tony's body was shaking with hysterical laughter and crying from it. The monitors he was plugged into were going haywire as two nurses and a doctor ran in.

What they encountered was a man in hysterics who clearly needed sedated before he ended up hurting himself.

Tony welcomed the darkness, with it, he wouldn't have to deal with the stress and fear. He would not wake up the infirmary again.

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P

**Please Review. :)**

**The next chapters after this one will be longer in length! **


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: Here is the next chapter, but be warned, there may or may not be a death of a minor-ish character. This was the last chapter of my original plot, from like the ending of this chapter on is my new plot. Enjoy :)**

**Disclaimer: That awkward moment when someone thinks I own the Avengers. **

* * *

Hours later his eyes fluttered open expecting to see the infirmary. To his surprise it was not the infirmary but one of the cells on the helicarrier that, usually reserved for criminals/evil villains, he now rested.

It was nothing like the one designed for the Hulk, which lead Tony to stop calling it "the cell" and start referring to it as "the wannabe Hulk cell".

This only lasted for a few seconds as the name was way too long and Tony noticed he was wearing a new garment. The straight jacket wasn't exactly comfortable or orthodox.

"What the- how did this happen?" Tony muttered but then sported a huge smile. He realized he could talk and control himself again.

"Woohoo! Take that Loki!" He shouted, not knowing that three psychologists and Fury were watching him through the camera in the cell. The Avengers, excluding himself and Bruce, were also there.

Tony's triumphant laughter sounded a lot like the hysterical, insane laughter that had plagued him before.

The psychologists looked grave after watching the surveillance footage.

"It would seem that Tony Stark has indeed suffered a breakdown of some sort, but what we need to focus on to get him better is the source. Do you know the reason for such a reaction?" The head shrink asked, not really to anyone in particular.

Steve was the first to respond.

"Well, he was getting stir crazy from staying on the helicarrier too long. Could this be some kind of severe cabin fever?"

The hopeful note that was hidden in his response was heard by everyone.

"Maybe, but why would he be shouting at Loki if he just wanted to leave?" One of the other shrinks said, glancing toward the head shrink as she said it.

"He did fly out for a bit and called in that Loki was in the area, but it was all a joke. Loki was never there." Clint supplied but the psychologists shook their heads.

"I don't know how to say this, but a breakdown like this didn't just come out of the blue. Adding in Mr. Stark's track record, the signs of something like this should have been showing up for months. Being stuck in one spot, as it is known he doesn't like, was the last straw most likely. I'm just curious, how could all of you have ignored the signs?"

The serious tone the shrink used was like a slap in all the Avenger's and Fury's faces. A silence took over the room until Tony shouted, "All you creeps watching me with that camera, you might want to stop looking at me, and start looking for the bomb I hid. It's set to go off in 45 minutes if I'm right on what time it is right now. And if I'm not, well, you've got less time to find it. Oh and by now, I'm sure you figured out that when I messed with the cameras, I also shut down Jarvis, so no asking him for help."

The laughter that followed was radical. Tony fell off the cot he was laying in, and began rolling on the floor. His injuries seemed frivolous to him on the outside, but Tony was feeling it on the inside.

Fury rushed out of the room and into the cell. He jerked the crazed man off the floor, holding him up by his straight jacket, which was quite painful.

"Where is it Stark? You realize you'll die too, don't you?"

Fury's angry words reached the Tony who was trapped within, who, up until this point, even with the pain, thought he was in control. This illusion cleared and he found himself face to face with a very mad Fury.

"Huh?" was all Tony managed before Fury punched him right in the jaw. Add that to his other injuries being aggravated by the straight jacket and Tony was in agony.

"Answer me Stark!" Fury growled.

"How did I get here?"

Fury smacked him again.

"I need its location!"

"What's location?" Tony yelled, blood from his re-split lip sprayed out.

"The bomb you planted."

"I didn't plant a bomb! When did I have time to plant a bomb?" Tony squeaked out.

"I don't know, but if this is another one of your "jokes"-"

"None of this was a joke! Loki was there and he's-"

Tony's face suddenly froze mid-sentence, a sinister smile forming on his face.

"40 minutes left," was all he said, and then his body went limp as he passed out from the pain.

Fury dropped his body to the floor and started ordering a full search and that at the 5 minutes mark everyone evacuate. Although it may have seemed extreme, they were dealing with an extreme case, a deranged genius, and so they reacted accordingly.

The Avengers spread out and also looked high and low but no one could find the supposed bomb. Evacuation started 3 minutes early. When they arrived at Tony's cell to carry him out they found it empty.

Tony was gone.

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~AV~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

Loki smirked with triumph as the shiny suit was put on the mortal's body. The suit responded perfectly to its master and maker. He blasted off into the sky.

_You ruined me once Stark, now it's my turn!_

He headed at full speed towards New York. Loki was trying to decide where "Iron Man" would strike first.

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~AV~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

"Director Fury."

"Yes?"

"An Iron Man suit just flew out of the hanger and is flying in the direction of New York, sir."

"So that's where he scurried off to while we were running around like headless chickens. Is everyone back on the helicarrier?"

"Yes sir."

"Good. Send the Avengers in the quinjet to take Stark out."

"Yes sir."

"How did everything turn sour so fast?" Fury asked himself.

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~AV~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

Clint and Natasha were flying the quinjet, and catching up to Tony fast, somehow. The billionaire must want to engage them because on any other day the little suit could outrun the quinjet.

"Tony's gone psycho, Bruce has turned into sleeping beauty, what's next? Cap turning into a vampire?" Clint said but stopped talking when Natasha sent him a death glare.

"Let's just focus on stopping Tony right now guys." Steve said, though his heart wasn't really in it.

He was starting to miss the good old days when the team joked like this all the time. It was scary to think that those days were only last week.

"There he is." Clint said, pointing at their teammate.

"Thor, fly out and reason with him, Clint and Natasha, ready the guns to fire off some warning shots. I'll ready the EMP machine so we can shut down the suit."

"Okay," Clint said, readying the ammo with Natasha. Little did they know, they were going to have to use every bit of it they had.

Negotiations were not going so well for Thor. He flew up next to the suit that was still flying towards New York, just not very fast.

Thor was about to extend his greetings when a repulsors charge shot at him. He dodged it but it fueled Thor's growing anger, and with it the sky darkened.

"Man of Iron, I do not wish to fight you, but if you continue on this path of destruction my hand will be forced."

The threat did nothing to stop the seven other blasts that were aimed for Thor.

"This is your last chance, end this madness! Come back to your friends."

Thor leveled his hammer out in front of him, quite like a swordsman with their weapon. Lightning flashed, streaking across the sky. But it was the thunder, shaking the ground like an earthquake that broke Tony away from his memories.

That and the ding of the elevator arriving on that floor. Scrambling to his feet, Tony dived behind the counter and held his breath.

"Huh, I thought for sure he would be here. Maybe Tony did go to Malibu." Clint said as he and several other people walked into the room.

"Look over there by the wall. Is that broken glass?" Steve said, pointing to the shards of glass scattered on the floor.

"He was here but he isn't now." Bruce muttered, a long sigh emitting from his mouth.

"So enlighten me again on how you guys finally figured out it was Loki, because all you wrote in your reports was, 'Engaged in battle. Learned Loki was controlling Iron Man. Defeated Loki.' What does that even mean?" Bruce demanded, his voice rising in volume.

"We might want to sit down, this will take a while." Natasha suggested. She grabbed one of the stools from the bar, mere feet from Tony's hiding spot.

After everyone got settled Steve began the telling of the tale.

"We sent Thor out to go talk to him, make him see reason, but of course that didn't work. Tony fired his repulsors at Thor and Thor hit him multiple times with his hammer. Nothing was working. I was just about done with the EMP machine when-"

"When my brother made himself known." Thor interrupted.

Steve allowed Thor to continue the story from his perspective. Tony felt his insides twist, and a familiar tingling enter his mind, but he could do nothing to stop it.

"He spoke through the Man of Iron's voice, and declared that he was the rightful king of Asgard. He said that only a weakling could not take down the mortal body that he had enchanted."

Thor paused but it was Clint that started speaking.

"It was then that everything started to make sense. The whole "joke" incident, the strangling of you, even the crazy, insane thing. It was Loki, not Tony who was behind everything. But before we could do anything with the information Tony…er… Loki uni-beamed Thor out of the sky and had his weapons aimed for the quinjet.

"Steve had only 30 seconds until the EMP would shut down the suit, so Natasha and I fired everything at him, hoping to buy some time. He shot most of them, dodged a few more, but two missiles hit the suit. He faltered, giving us just the right amount of time for the EMP.

"Thor caught the suit after it shut off and we went back to the helicarrier. One of those Asgardian magician people came down to Earth a few days later. His spell released you from your sleep and Tony from Loki. The rest you know."

The silence that followed was deafening as each Avenger was stuck in their own thoughts. One in particular was in the literal sense stuck.

The elevator dinged once more, but Tony didn't notice it. He was fighting with all his might to keep control of himself.

Heels clicked, and a feminine voice was speaking to the others, a voice Tony should have noticed, but he didn't. Behind the counter was more glasses. His hand curled around one, but Loki was in control.

With the glass firmly in his hand, he stood up quickly and threw it with all his might at the area where the voices were coming from. Tony was sure Loki felt some satisfaction when he saw the end result. Tony, on the other hand, was in shock.

Pepper, _his _Pepper, was laying on the floor with the broken glass imbedded in the back of her skull. She was dead before she had even hit the floor.

Tony had tunnel vision, and the world seemed to go into slow motion from there. The rest of the Avengers jumped from their seats. Steve was tending to Pepper, Clint and Natasha yelling something, but Thor was handling the real problem.

Bruce was going green, and this time there was a whole city open to destruction.

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**Please Review!**

**I am sooo excited about the next chapter. It is going to be a masterpiece! (Evil laughter in the background)**

** You should be afraid. **


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: Okay this should have been longer but Dairy Queen Blizzard forced it to be shortened. Blame the buy one get one 99 cents thing they have going, not me. Sorry about the confusion from the previous chapter. I forgot to clarify that we were finished with the past and were back to the present with Tony in Stark Tower (with it raining outside). My bad. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Avengers, or Marvel, but kidnapping Stan Lee is a possibility. **

* * *

All throughout New York City the monstrous roar was heard. Inside Stark Tower, however, the roar was lived.

It had only taken seconds for the small body of Bruce Banner to transform into the giant, green, rage monster. And much like the last time he changed, the Hulk's initial anger was aimed at Tony.

Pepper's death was tossed on the backburner when all the Avengers saw the Hulk. The Hulk only seemed to see Tony.

_I killed Pepper, _was all that was going through Tony's mind, at the moment. Even the roar didn't drag him out of his shock. To make matters worse, Loki decided to show up, in his _own_ body.

He appeared right next to Tony. In fact his body seemed to flow out of Tony in river of green mist.

"Well isn't this just _smashing. _Here we all are. I really do wish I could sit by and watch Tony get killed by the Hulk, but I still need him."

And with that Loki grabbed Tony's shirt, yanked him off his feet, and threw him into the window, effectively breaking and tossing Tony out of it. Tony felt a sense of déjà vu when he found himself falling. Pepper's dead body was still at the forefront of his thoughts, but self-preservation kicked in, and saving himself became priority one.

_Iron man suit bracelets aren't on, Thor and the Hulk are back there so no chance of being caught. There is nothing I can do! _

Tony was panicking now. In a few second he would make like a bug on the windshield to the sidewalk. He didn't expect, when he was less than 7 meters from the ground, his surroundings to change completely.

Tony's body landed in a pool of water. It should have killed him from the height that he fell, but it didn't. The impact was much like if he had been standing next to the pull and just jumped in.

There was no time to contemplate this because flashes of his captivity in the Middle East assaulted his mind. The water was bringing back his torture with the waterboarding.

Tony's arms began flailing and he somehow broke the surface. He gulped in the air as he swam to the edge and scrambled out. Tony was lying on his back, breathing deeply. When he finally calmed his racing heart, his brain reminded him of how he got into the pool.

_How did everything change? Did Loki do this?_

He was just about to sit up and look around when the sound of footsteps reached his ears. Tony jerked up and his eyes landed on the figure who was clad in a black suit.

_How in this world is that-_

"Tony, going for a midnight swim?" Obadiah asked, smiling at Tony.

_This isn't possible. He is definitely dead._

Something in the back of his mind whispered, j_ust like Pepper. _

Tony's face paled and he started sliding backwards with every step Obi took towards him. The pool was right behind him as Obadiah reached forward to touch him, and Tony couldn't get away. He shut his eyes, waiting for the contact, waiting for the fingers around his throat.

Seconds turned into minutes. After two minutes Tony finally popped his eyes open but he wasn't by the pool anymore with Obi. Now he was at the donut place with Fury and Natasha staring at him intently.

_This is crazy _he thought just as Natasha stabbed him in the neck to administer the stabilizer for the palladium poisoning. The stab turned into a punch made by Happy in the boxing ring.

Tony couldn't breathe for a few seconds since he was just punched in the neck, but recovered.

_Everything is changing. Who knows how long I'll stay in this place._

Happy looked a bit guilty and was apologizing but all Tony could see, hear, breathe, and think was _Pepper_.

She stood by the door smiling. He jumped from the ring and ran to her. Tony hugged her with all his might, tears flowing down his face.

"I love you Pepper."

"I love you t-" her body was suddenly limp.

He moved back to see what was wrong and felt nausea grip him. Tony was holding Pepper's dead body in Stark Tower. He collapsed to his knees cradling her body in his arms.

"Tony what's going on? How did you get back here?"

Gently, he laid Pepper's body on the floor before turning to Steve. The Captains suit was all ripped and torn. Dried blood caked most of it. It was his face, however, that scared Tony the most.

His features were that of Clint and his voice of Thor. Looking closely he saw that Steve's hands were quite feminine. Underneath his helmet a few black curls snuck out.

It was unreal. Each of his teammates had seemingly been shoved into one body. Tony felt himself freeze, during the calm before the storm. Because, when he got over the shock, only 3 Mississippi's later, the setting around him was changing once more, only this time at a much faster pace.

People were appearing and disappearing. All of them were from his past. Everywhere he looked there were things flickering in and out. Tony was overwhelmed by the changes, especially when Pepper faded away.

"Who is causing this!?" He shouted to the world around him, a world that he no longer knew. It started spinning, like it was a tornado and he was in the eye.

His eyes couldn't keep up and when it turned to a blur of color the world went into darkness. Tony was now lying on his back.

_Beep_

_I must have passed out or something,_ he thought.

_Beep_

He then began to struggle with his eyes.

_Beep_

_Why won't they open? _

_Beep_

_And what is that beeping noise? _Tony thought testily. His eyes still wouldn't open, so instead he tried to sit up.

Pain shot through his torso, feeling a lot like his previous injuries. Tony let out a small groan. The beeping got faster and he jumped when he felt someone's hand grab his.

The sound of people running into the room also startled him.

_Who are you? _He thought, and tried to speak but his mouth wasn't cooperating either.

_Oh no. Loki's spell better not be back again. You'd think it would have worn off by now. _

"Tony, everything is fine. I'm right here, I won't let the doctors do anything to harm you. You're safe." An angelic voice spoke.

_Oh great, I'm dead. How did I get into heaven? Maybe all that philanthropy paid off. _

Now he was really trying to force his eyes open. With an insane amount of effort he finally managed to open them a tiny bit. The blinding light shut them automatically but they reopened once more after a few blinks.

Pepper, _his _Pepper, was sitting right beside him holding his hand. She was alive, or he really was in heaven, either way he was totally cool with it.

A worried look was shown on her face. Tony was about to attempt to ask her what was wrong when one of the doctors decided that it was the perfect moment to shove a penlight in his face.

"Eyes still dilated and sluggish in response to the light. Mr. Stark, can you hear me? If so, blink twice."

The man was extremely annoying. Tony blinked twice and waited for what other hoops he was going to have to jump through.

"Well you're responding to us and to stimulus as your heart rate did go up in your painful attempt to sit up. Your body will be delayed in following the commands from your brain for a bit longer. The Asgardian will be here in a moment to see if any permanent damage is there or if there is any chance of a relapse."

The doctor then nodded to Pepper and left the room. Tony glanced at Pepper with a questioning expression.

"You don't remember, do you? You and the rest of the Avengers were sent to Asgard, for Thursebolt, a feast in honor of Thor. They timed it so that Odin entered the Odinsleep during the festivities so that Thor could protect Asgard while Odin was sleeping. Well, Loki and some other rogue Asgardian spell casters showed up in a plot to kill the king. They defeated each of the Avengers, including yourself, and were casting a magical curse on the Odinsleep. You somehow jumped in the way and it forced you into your own Odinsleep. And with it came the curse." Pepper finished, smiling sadly at Tony.

That was when the rest of the Avengers walked into the hospital room with another Asgardian in tow.

"Tony, you're awake." Steve stated while Bruce added, "It's about time. You've been asleep for a week."

Tony was thankful he couldn't talk, it gave him an excuse for being dumbstruck. He was overwhelmed.

_They're smiling at me. Pepper is alive. It's as if none of the other stuff happened. Was that really just a dream or is this the illusion?_

* * *

**Please Review! **

**The whole "Odinsleep" thing will be explained in the coming chapters. But here is a question for you, If Thursebolt is feast in honor of Thor, is Thursday a feast every week in honor of Thor?**

**(I am sooo claiming holiday so I don't have to go to school :))**


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: Here is the next chapter! No Dairy Queen blizzard to distract me today. Thanks for all the reviews. **

**Disclaimer: My plan to kidnap Stan Lee has ultimately failed, so I still don't own the Avengers...or Marvel. **

* * *

_Was that really just a dream or is this the illusion?_

This question was still bouncing around in Tony's mind when the Asgardian, not Thor, stretched his hand out above Tony's head and muttered something. Blue light projected from the hand and it swirled around Tony.

Once all the magic had diminished in the air, the Asgardian smiled.

"All of the Odinsleep and the curse is gone. The mortal is free from it's grip and I foresee no chance of a relapse."

He turned and began walking out the door, but Thor had to thank him before he left.

"Thank you, Hoder, your visions were greatly needed and can never be repaid."

"There is one payment I will accept."

Thor perked up and inquired of this payment.

"I want Loki defeated and captured so that he may never control and plague another Asgardian or mortal again. That is my price."

And with that the Asgardian was gone. The rest of the company turned back to Tony and were engaging in pleasant conversation. Tony smiled as he drifted off to sleep again, but this time because he was actually tired.

His dreams were filled with the memories of Thursebolt and the battle after it. Then a flash of light ended the dreams and Tony started the journey back to the real world again, or at least he hoped it was the real world.

His hearing was the first to start working, but he stiffened in fear when Fury's voice registered. Flashes of the hoped nightmare surfaced, scenes from those painful moments in the cell turned the survival instinct on.

And so, he feigned sleep. The sounds formed into words and Tony, having nothing else to do, listened in.

"-he doesn't know yet. He still thinks it was all a dream."

Then another voice joined in.

"What are we going to do about it? Will he be punished?"

"I don't know. He was controlled by Loki and forced to attack us, he shouldn't be punished, but it's not up for me to decide. He did kill a person."

Tony's mind went for a tailspin.

_It really happened, but how is Pepper here if I killed her?_

And the answer was given.

"How long can she keep up the shape shift? He's going to figure it out eventually."

"Thor said they could usually hold one constantly for five days at most. That gives us four to sort everything out." Fury replied and then the world faded away once more.

The next time he woke up, Tony opened his eyes stealthily only to find the room empty. No one was around.

_This is my chance. _Tony thought as he sat up gingerly, minding his ribs.

He was lucky that his body was responding to his commands at all during such an opportune moment. He looked down at his broken leg, since apparently all the injuries he sustained in the "dream" were actually real ones from his fight, and braced himself.

Tony slid over to the side of the bed and put his foot and cast onto the floor. Now for the hard part, standing up. Most of his weight went on the good leg, but even so, the world swayed as he stood.

When the vertigo was over, Tony began to limp over to the hospital room door, albeit extremely slow.

With each step it felt like he was hammering a nail into his ankle but he continued the journey anyway.

Tony poked his head out the door, once he got there, and surveyed for any people.

There were only a few nurse lurking about, so Tony realized he had to switch to plan A2, the version he wasn't looking forward to. He limped back into the room, still getting dizzy spells every now and then, and started going through the cabinets and drawers.

Tony almost gave a whoop when he found it. The saw was well hidden behind a lot of the equipment but he had still found it. Tony glanced around again before he started furiously sawing into his cast.

The specialized machine doesn't move the saw in a circular motion but rather in a side-to-side motion, only giving the person a tickling sensation when touching the skin. But when the saw is making contact with the cast, the whole thing vibrates so bad that it becomes uncomfortable, and for a person whose leg is still broken, quite recently in fact, the sensation was painful.

To make matters worse, the noise was giving Tony a headache to go along with his concussion. All in all, the experience was miserable but it got the job done.

In only a minute or so Tony had the cast off and could see the swelling foot. The sight of stitches along his ankle made him nauseous.

_Why do I have stitches? No one said anything about a compound fracture, or really anything about my foot. _

Tony wanted to ponder the puzzle further but time was flying by and he need to act fast before someone noticed. Tony again walked over to the door, but this time his leg was dragged behind him instead of actually put weight on.

He checked to see if the coast was clear, and when it was, he limped across the hall to the supply closet which was just so conveniently located on the opposite wall from his room.

_Get the scrubs and get out. _Tony kept repeating in his head.

He grabbed a pair of scrubs and changed out of the lovely dress they made all patients wear and into the scrubs. Finding work boots was the real jackpot. Tony slipped them on and tied his broken leg tight so as the act like a splint.

Another 'the world is spinning' moment happened and when it finally passed Tony sighted the elevator. Eventually he actually made it to the elevator without being noticed. He clicked the button for the lobby and sagged against the wall. When he again felt like he was going to pass out Tony was forced to give himself a pep talk.

"It's either this Tony or living your life in a cell remembering everyday why you're there and who you killed. This is the only way, so get it together."

The talk took longer than it should have because Tony kept pausing to take ragged breaths in between words. Thankfully no one got in the elevator with him and he could steel himself for the walk out, all the while seeming like a normal, non-murderer, person.

_This is going to suck, _he thought bitterly, and it did.

Each step was worse than the last since he had to walk normal, which had him put all his weight on each foot. His ankle throbbed and was on the verge of quitting but he kept going.

_Just keep smiling and don't show pain, _Tony told himself.

It felt like half his life had gone by when he finally arrived at the doors of the hospital. Thankfully they were automatic and he didn't have to push on them.

Tony stumbled to the parking lot and went to the first car he saw with a keypad to unlock it. Eying the worn down buttons, Tony figured out the code in a matter of seconds him being a genius and all.

Once the doors were unlocked Tony opened the door and collapsed into the seat. His scrubs were now completely soaked with sweat and when he pulled down the sun visor and looked into the mirror, he saw his pale complexion.

_I look like I'm dead, _he thought but then put the visor back up. His luck was on his side when he saw the pocketknife sitting in the cup holders. Tony snatched it and leaned down below the steering wheel, wincing as his tender ribs screamed with every movement.

Popping open the compartment to expose the wires, Tony stripped the need ones and practiced his hot wiring skills. Apparently he still had it because the car started and he let loose a sigh of relief.

_The hard part is over now. Just drive until you see a sign that indicates where you are._

The hospital name was a generic one but the license plates did show that he was in New Mexico of all places. It only took a few minutes to find out he was in a city called Zuni Pueblo, which was close to the Arizona-New Mexico border. Tony, not being in his right mind, came up with a great plan.

_Maybe I can drive from here to Malibu. _

He was ignoring the voice of reason that screamed something about a ten hour drive, in a stolen car, with no money. The bitter thoughts did manage to fuel his frustrations about life in general.

"How am I going to do this? Live my life without Pepper on the run?" Tony muttered aloud as he drove towards Arizona.

Tony felt like for the first time in a lifetime he had control over his life, even though this control involved him driving a car on an impossible journey. With every mile he drove, Tony got farther away from the hospital, and also farther away from the truth.

His body, however, couldn't take anymore excitement, and when an idiot driver ran a red light, Tony couldn't react quick enough.

The sound of twisting metal was all Tony could hear as the car came barreling into the right side of his stolen car. His body felt every bump. It became too much to take in, and when his head was flung into the wheel before the airbag went off, combined with his previous concussion, Tony pass out.

_~AV~_

Pepper was on SHIELD's helicarrier in a deep discussion with Director Fury.

"We have to tell him the truth. He deserves to know she's dead."

"I know, I know." Fury replied, looking troubled.

"Freyr should know his sister Freyja was killed by him in the battle while he was under Loki's spell."

"Like I said to Steve, it's out of my hands. Odin will choose the Asgardian's fate. Just because Freyr resister enough to allow Tony to save Odin doesn't mean he can walk free."

Pepper huffed and was about to continue the debate when her phone rang.

"Hello. What? He got hit by a-"  
Pepper's face drained of all color and she dropped the phone.

"Pepper, what happened? Is it Tony?" Fury asked as he walked toward the shocked red head.

"He left the hospital and stole someone's car, but while he was driving another car hit him." Pepper barely whispered.

"Let's go." Fury said and guided Pepper out of the room and down the hall to the hangar.

They were hovering over New Mexico, since there were no giant lakes to park in and the ocean was too far in case of an emergency, such as the one they were just informed of.

Fury ordered a pilot to take him and Pepper down to the hospital. He lead Pepper into one of the quinjets and got ready for take off.

Pepper was calming down slowly and by the time they had landed on the hospital she was back to being cool and collected. Both her and Fury jumped out of the quinjet just seconds after it had been parked and were running to get into the hospital.

Tony had been taken back to the same one so Pepper knew how to navigate the halls. They arrived at Tony's room only a few minutes after landing.

If they had thought Tony had looked bad after the Asgard incident, then how he looked now must have been terrifying. The heart monitor was back, along with an oxygen mask and several other machines. IV's and tubes were sticking out of Tony left and right.

There were stitches along his hairline and bruises on his face from hitting the steering wheel and the delayed airbag. The left leg was now in a splint until surgery could be performed again, and that was just how he looked.

When Pepper picked up his medical chart and read over it, she realized there were a few more problems. Tony had managed to break a few ribs, the same ones that were already injured, and had re-broken his ankle along with the delicate screw that had been placed to hold the piece of his tibia that he had broken off.

Pepper hadn't wanted to overload him with information when Tony had first woken up, so she had neglected to mention the screw. The surgery to replace it was already scheduled for later that day.

"He's already had a CT scan on his head to check for any brain damage from his second concussion but the area is still swelling and they'll have to wait until it goes down." Pepper informed Fury after handing him the chart.

"Why was he trying to escape?" Fury asked.

"I don't know. You don't think it has anything to do with Loki's spell, do you?"

"We don't know what went on in that head of his, so it could be." Fury said as he sat down in a chair next to the hospital bed.

Pepper followed the suit and sat down in another chair. They both sat watching Tony breathe in his unconscious state. Steve and Bruce ran in only five minutes after Pepper and Fury.

"We heard about Tony, how is he?" Steve asked, worry shown all over his face.

Pepper explained his injuries to the two men, and each nodded silently.

"When he wakes up, we'll have to ask him why he tried to leave." Fury stated.

"Did you guys notice his reaction when we were there when he first woke up?" Bruce asked cryptically.

The other three shook their heads no.

"He acted like he was surprised we even cared about him. When Steve and I smiled at Tony he looked like he thought he'd never seen us smile in forever. What I'm saying is-"

"That whatever Tony dreamed about was a nightmare that caused us to be against him or something in that area." Steve finished, the realization only making things more confusing.

"But if that's true, then why wouldn't he believe us when we told him about the Odinsleep? Tony would have figured out what happened wasn't real." Pepper argued.

Fury's eyes widened.

"Rogers, weren't we talking about Freyr when we were in here with Tony? What if he only heard part of that conversation, it would've sounded like we were going to punish someone, and knowing Tony, he would've assumed it was him."

The theory made sense. Tony probably wasn't thinking clearly and thought he would be taken away. Escape was the only thing that would ensure it wouldn't happen.

"If he acted like he'd never see you guys smile at him again, then why did he act like he thought he'd never see me again?" Pepper whispered and the occupants in the room all felt a sense of dread.

That was when Tony decided to wake up again. If had known he was going to have to tell them the whole story, Tony would have never woken up.

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**Please Review**

**Now you know that this is reality, or is it? (Evil laugh)**


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: Here is the new chappy. This story is going into its final chapters as we speak. :( The twists and crazy complex strange moments are going to stop and a happy ending will be presented. (Yeah right) So without further adieu, enjoy the new chapter. **

**Disclaimer: No chance of owning the Avengers, operation Stan Lee failed. **

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Tony's eyes flickered open. As they adjusted to the lighting he recognized the four other people in the room. He inwardly cringed.

_Now they're going to punish me or pretend that I don't know anything. I have to confront them._

But before Tony could open his mouth to talk, Pepper stood and hugged him as tightly as she could without hurting his injured ribs.

"Don't you ever do anything as stupid as that again." She whispered in his ear and Tony felt something wet drip onto his shoulder.

Tony opened his mouth to reassure her but felt the oxygen mask on his face. Then, it all came back, the escape, the car, and the wreck.

_No wonder she's freaking out, I could have- no, this isn't Pepper, it's some kind of imposter. _

So, with that in mind, when Pepper let go of him and sat back down Tony pulled off the mask and spoke his piece.

"I don't know whose idea this was but I know about it. So you can quit with the disguise."

Tony's voice was cold and without feeling. Pepper's heart broke.

"tony, we know that the spell did something to you and now you can't tell which is reality, but please, believe me, this is real. I'm real." Pepper pleaded.

Tony felt the tiniest sliver of doubt begin to form in his head.

_What if this is the real world?_

Tony was too busy trying to be uncaring to even bother contemplating the question.

"It doesn't matter what you say. I will not believe you."

Tony put the mask back on, giving Bruce his chance to speak.

"If you're so sure that what you saw and experienced was real, then it won't be too much of a problem to tell us about it since it should be old new to us anyway."

Bruce said it calmly but he knew Tony wouldn't be able to find fault with the request. Tony actually fidgeted a bit before nodding yes. He waited another minute and then took off the mask to begin the tale.

Although it was a condensed version, all throughout the recollection Tony was taken aback at how surprised they seemed the farther they got in the story. Pepper had tears pouring down her face the entire time.

Fury looked ashamed, as well as Steve. Bruce, however, looked guilty and was gripped with sadness. It wasn't until the part that Tony killed Pepper that Tony actually allowed any emotion into his voice, and even that emotion was saddening.

When Tony had finished he, being completely exhausted, stuck the oxygen mask back on and fell into a deep sleep. His snores were the only sound in the room. The four visitors were in complete shock. Tony saw them as untrustworthy and evil.

Their friend was afraid of them, and after hearing what went on in his head, they actually understood why. Pepper was the first to break their silence.

"We've got to convince him he's wrong." She said determinedly.

"But that's almost impossible with Tony. If he thinks he's right, no one can sway him." Steve muttered.

"Except for Pepper, she could change his mind if only he didn't think she was an imposter." Bruce added.

That was when Fury got the best idea ever.

"What if we took him back to Asgard and showed the sights again to jog his memory. If we could get Odin to formally thank Tony for saving him maybe he would believe us."

Pepper got excited at this and actually managed a smile.

"If Freyr could also talk to Tony, he would at least know another person who had been controlled by Loki like that."

The rest nodded in agreement but they would have to wait until Tony was healed enough to make the trip. For the next few days they had constant guards at Tony's door so there wouldn't be a repeat escape.

Although Tony did sleep a lot, when he was awake he didn't really talk, just stared at the ceiling. It wasn't that there wasn't anyone to talk to because he had visitors all the time.

Pepper had practically moved in at the hospital. She had her own cot in the room with Tony. Bruce was always coming and going, usually dropping off some kind of electronic device for Tony to occupy himself with, but they were never touched by the genius.

Natasha and Clint would come together occasionally. Thor would come now and then and Steve came almost as much as Bruce.

After four days Tony was deemed fit enough to be discharged. At this point they actually did go to Tony's house in Malibu. He had been instructed by his not to walk on his broken leg, especially after he messed up the first surgery's work. They had to repair the broken screw and so they were extremely strict that he doesn't ruin another one.

Now Tony was sitting in his lab tinkering with a new project of his, but his mind was now where near thinking about he was doing.

_No one has been letting up on this act of theirs. Pepper's disguise is still on and there has been no dislike shown towards me. Could I be wrong about this reality? _He again doubted.

That was when Pepper, Fury, and the rest of the Avengers walked in. He hadn't been playing any music so heard them not long after they entered the house since Thor was with them. They knew he wasn't talking to them so they went with a straight forward approach.

"Mr. Stark, you have hereby been ordered to join us and go to Asgard at Odin's request."

Tony stared at Fury with his mouth agape.

_What the hell? _He thought but the side of him that believed this was reality jumped for joy. It finally had the chance to prove it.

"Okay, when do we leave?" Tony asked calmly, surprising the others.

"Right now. We just need to go outside and Heimdall will open the Bifrost for us." Fury replied. He kept his eyes on the billionaire, wary of any tricks he might pull.

The whole group walked up the stairs from the lab, well, everyone but Tony. He used crutches to go up, very slowly too with his ribs. By the time they were standing outside in the warm Malibu air, Tony was exhausted.

If he hadn't been leaning up against his crutches, he would have been on the floor, much to his chagrin. This didn't affect Thor's bellowing for Heimdall or the great flash of light and emergence of butterflies in Tony's stomach.

The feeling of a wild roller coaster went through his body. The next thing he knew, they were standing in some kind of building with as extremely intimidating man who had a gigantic sword.

His golden, fiery eyes caught sight of Thor and the rest of the group. The two exchanged greetings before the company went on their way to the herd of horses that awaited them on the rainbow bridge. Tony looked in disbelief at the horses.

_There is no way I am riding that, _he thought disdainfully.

Pepper seemed to notice his displeasure and realization dawned on her.

"I forgot you don't like horses Tony," she said, a smile tugging at her lips.

"You were in your suit of iron at the last visit." Thor recalled.

"It's fine. I can walk," Tony said, although he couldn't decide which was worse, using his crutches all the way down the endless rainbow, or riding the horse instead.

"No that won't work. How about you and I ride together. This way your ribs won't be jarred as much and I'll make sure your leg isn't injured when we mount and dismount." Pepper suggested, the smile still threatening to break loose.

_I've don't have a better option. I guess I'll have to ride with fake Pepper... Fepper. _Tony muttered in his head, forgetting to add that they should be grateful he was even talking to them.

Merely nodding his consent, Tony hobbled over to the closest horse, still eying it like it was the devil himself.

"How is he going to get up there?" Steve asked, and after a few minutes of brainstorming, Thor came up with a solution.

In an awkward hugging hold, Thor lifted Tony up and put him on the saddle of the horse. Pepper hopped on a few seconds later. After getting situated and everyone getting settled on their horses, they were riding across the sparkling road.

If it hadn't been so painful and uncomfortable, Tony might actually have been able to enjoy the view and marvel at the beauty of Asgard. Pepper, who was sitting behind him with her arms gingerly around him to hold him steady, was giggling.

"You are so lucky I didn't tell them why you don't like horses, especially for riding."

Her words sparked more hope for Tony that this was real.

_If she was an imposter she wouldn't know why I don't like horses._

But before she could enlighten him of her knowledge, a dark cloud formed in the sky above them. Tony's joy ended when his eyes landed on the clouds. He felt a bit of foreboding, which of course had to come true.

Loki came flying out of the cloud, his scepter in hand as he glided to land in front of the charging horses. They stopped dead in their tracks. Thor dismounted and was holding his hammer in his hand with his eyes boring holes into Loki.

"Hello, I hope their acting hasn't convinced you, Tony." Loki said slyly, completely ignoring Thor and the threat that he was.

Tony's insides turned cold and his heart to ice. Now he was torn. Who, or really what reality was real? The one that was a nightmare but seemed to be continuing, or the one he so desperately wanted but was seeing slip through his finger tips?

Pepper squeezed him a bit tighter and whispered, "Don't listen to him, Tony. You're free from that curse."

The words were meant to soothe him, but they only succeeded in splitting his decision further.

_Pepper is here in this one, it must be real, _he tried to convince himself. Loki shattered that hope.

"Are you really going to believe those words from that fake? She grows weaker by the day from holding the shift for so long. Just one shove will break the spell."

Once the thought was planted Tony couldn't help but consider it.

_Just one push, _he thought.

While he was distracted Thor made his move, attack. Lightning came out of no where and shot directly at the trickster. It went straight through.

He appeared next to Tony and his arm contacted with flesh. Pepper was falling off the horse, but she suddenly changed. It wasn't Pepper any longer.

_NO!_

A beautiful Asgardian lay sprawled on the ground. Her eyes flashed dangerously at Loki. Tony, however, felt betrayal well up inside of him.

Although he had thought that his paranoia and fears might be right, he had never truly believed they would turn out like this. The Asgardian woman stood and drew her sword.

Brandishing it, she swung it at Loki, whipping it over the top of the horse. Tony had to duck so it wouldn't hit him.

Loki just grinned and let it go through him once more.

"Loki is here! Find him!" She shouted, and all of Asgard, as if it had been waiting, sprung to life. Warriors jumped from hiding places, archers appeared at the tops of the high structures, and spell casters unveiled their invisible forms.

Tony couldn't believe his eyes.

_They lied about everything. _

A few tears trickled down his face, where he was still laying on the horse after ducking. The rest of the Avengers dismounted along with Fury and were discussing battle plans. They all seemed to forget one person.

Even the fake Pepper (Fepper) was too busy glaring at anything that moved to notice Tony.

_I have to get away, _was all he thought as he finally sat up on his horse.

_'Too bad you can't,' _another voice said.

Loki was back in his head, but for once Tony wasn't surprised, or even sad.

_Just use me and get it over with. I've got nothing left to live for anyway. _

The inner conversation continued and Tony became oblivious to the outside world.

_'Why so gloomy?'_

_I killed my girlfriend and my team lied to me about it. I was almost convinced. _

His body fell off the horse onto the ground and someone was now shaking his shoulder, but Tony didn't notice.

_'Would you like me to end it right now?'_

The thought, oddly enough, was like a wish come true. But it seemed too good to be true.

_'I could stop your heart right now, but it will have to be you who agrees and says the words', _Loki's voice encouraged.

His shoulder was being shaken violently now. Nothing was registering except, '_I could stop you heart right now.' _

A new voice was filtering in.

"He hit you with another spell! Snap out of it!"

It wasn't loud enough to break the wall of uncertainty and magic.

_Just tell Loki, and everything will be fine, _Tony told himself but it didn't feel like 'himself'. The voice became more than a background noise this time.

"You have to choose! We can't make it for you Tony!"

_I have to choose? Between life and death?_

The decision that was being forced upon him finally struck home. The death spiral Tony had been in ended.

_I have to choose, _he though more firmly. The shaking of his shoulder felt like it had paused.

_This isn't real. That is the real world. The one where Pepper is there, and my team has my back. That is what I want._

'_So be it,' _Loki whispered.

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**Please Review! **

**What is going to happen next? **

**Don't worry there is a plot to this whole thing, otherwise it would've been abandoned. **


	11. Chapter 11

**AN: Here is the second to last chapter :(. It's kinda short because the stopping point was earlier than planned. Last chapter is going to be long! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers... or Disney... or Brave... or Finding Nemo... or Tarzan (there, I'm done!)**

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_'So be it' Loki whispered. _

Then Asgard faded away into, wait... Asgard?

Pepper was now sitting above him, as he was laying on the rainbow floor. The second is eyes laid on her he knew _this _was real.

_How could I have not noticed before? _Tony chided himself.

For the first time since he first woke up in the hospital, Tony could actually _see_ the world around him. A cloud had been lifted.

Pepper was looking at him with the sweetest smile on her face. Something liquid landed on him.

"You have got to stop doing that." She said before hugging Tony tightly, and even though it hurt his ribs, he didn't care.

"I was so close. He almost gave in. What does that tell you about your brave little Avenger?" An annoying voice sneered.

"Tough luck Loki. You just don't seem to have it anymore, if you ever did." Sif shot back.

The conversation drew Tony's focus. The horses and Avengers were still around him, but Thor and a few other Asgardians were standing by the bound figure of Loki.

Magic bonds were keeping him in place. Loki was about to respond to Sif when Odin himself came forth on his own steed. All words died in Loki's throat at the sight of his 'father'.

Another Asgardian was following him. This one had an amazing sword, but more importantly, a look of pure hatred on his face. The look was aimed at Loki.

Odin, himself, didn't even glance at Loki.

"Well done, you have captured the enemy. I have chosen his keeper. Freyr will watch over Loki until his sentence is over." Odin declared.

Loki's face paled. Freyr must have been the Asgardian who road with Odin because he smirked devilishly.

"You will pay for what you did to me and my sister Freyja."

And with that Freyr grabbed Loki's neck from his seat on the horse, and pulled him atop the steed. If anyone protested to Odin's choice of jailer, they didn't show it.

Soon Loki and Freyr were gone, riding off on the horse back into the city. That was when Odin's gaze fell upon Tony.

"And you, man of iron, I must thank. Asgard would have fallen into Loki's hands if not for your bravery. You are an Asgardian warrior in my eyes."

Odin bowed from where he sat on his horse. Tony would have shrugged the honor off and said "No biggy," but his body decided to shut down right then. Asgard again faded away as well as Odin and the others.

_Now he'll take the 'Asgard warrior' part back, _Tony thought. His body went limp.

_1 Week Later_

"Pepper I feel fine." Tony grumbled to her but she continued to fuss over him.

_I can't believe it's only been a week, _Tony thought.

They were in his lab right now and Pepper was irritated that Tony had opted to work on his new suit while his injuries were still healing.

His head still bothered him a bit and his ribs did ache when he did too much but Tony could live with that for now. His leg was in a cast and wasn't coming out until a few more weeks. So, he was still on crutches and they annoyed him to death.

"Tony, are you evening listening to me?" Pepper asked.

Tony, who was sitting in a chair with his back facing her, felt a small piece of guilt eat at him for not hearing Pepper.

_This can't be good, _But when Tony turned to look at the love of his life it wasn't irritation or annoyance that was shown across her face. A smile was spread all over it.

"Obviously you weren't listening. Clint's coming over soon to talk to you about something. I know it's hard but you're going to have to let them in sometime."

Pepper gave him a look that said 'don't push him away' and then walked out. Tony sighed.

Each of the Avengers had been stopping by to try and mend their trust. Bruce had been easy enough. Although he walked into the lab with uncertainty written all over him, when Tony called him over to look an equation they fell back into their normal roles.

After that, Bruce was staying with them in the Malibu home. Steve was a lot harder. Their relationship had gone as far back as when they first met, or at least Tony's side had.

Steve had tried everything to convince Toy that he did believe in him. Tony was still untrusting of the captain.

When Steve had left looking downtrodden, Pepper ripped Tony a new one.

"Why don't you believe him? We need to put what happened in the past. We can't do that Tony, if you don't let them in."

She had been furious with him. Too bad she didn't realize it was worse for Tony. Even now, while he sat tweaking suit designs and waiting for the archer to show, Tony couldn't quit thinking about Steve and the rest of the Avengers.

_Why is it so hard? I know it wasn't real and yet every time I see them I start mapping out escape plans and go on the defensive._

He just wanted things to go back to the way they were.

_But they never will be like they were, _he thought sadly.

Clint showed up right at this moment. He jumped down from one of the vents and practically gave Tony a heart attack.

"Do you always have to come from the ceiling and make an entrance?" Tony asked once he got over being startled.

"Do you always have to fly in with ACDC blasting from every speaker?" Clint asked back.

"Touche."

Clint walked to Tony and leaned against the desk he was sitting next to.

"So, you've come to "men the bond that was broken" aye Merida?" Tony joked but on the inside he was afraid of a repeat 'Steve' incident.

"Nice quote from Brave Tony. And yes, I am here to fix our trust issues."

"And by "our" you mean mine." Tony muttered, looking at his ideas for the new suit.

"How about I save us both some time by skipping over the whole part about me being sorry about what happened," Clint said.

He wasn't a 'lovey-dovey' guy and talking about feelings was not his strongest trait. Clint also knew it wasn't Tony's either.

"I know you're tired of hearing that. And I know you're tired of hearing that no one knows what you feel like, but I am the closest person that does."

Tony froze when he heard those last words but still didn't face Clint.

"No being in control of yourself is a horrible feeling. You try as hard as you can to make yourself stop but nothing works."

Clint paused so he could straighten out his thoughts in order to say what he needed to next. Tony was slowly turning to look at the archer. Clint continued.

"Everyone sees you doing these horrible things and you can see that they aren't attributing it to Loki but to you. When the madness finally ends they still look at you with those fearful eyes and suspicious glances."

Clint stopped again. Tony was staring at him now with a look of understanding. Tony decided it was his turn to talk, as much as it pains him to admit.

"It makes it worse that you don't even trust yourself. You ask yourself, what if it happens again without Loki's influence? What if it really was me who did those things?" Tony whispered, his eyes now focused on the floor.

They sat in silence for the next few minutes, both lost in the memories of their own personal nightmares. Clint suddenly stood up from his leaning position.

"It may seem like hell now Tony, but it will get better. Trust me, it never was you and never will be you who did those things."

He then strolled to the lab door and just as he opened it Tony called out to him.

"Hey Clint, thanks."

A small smile graced Clint's face as he left Tony alone in his lab.

_The guy doesn't need company for this part, _Clint thought.

Tony was barely holding it together, he needed to release and break down so that he could be built back up. Clint also knew he would need help afterward. So Clint sat down on the couch in the living room and waited.

In the lab, Tony was putting up a good fight but once the first tear trickled down his face the dam broke. Sobs racked his body sending jets of pain through his ribs.

Tony let his walls fall and with them the tears.

He cried for what he did, for what he was afraid of doing, and for himself. He didn't know how long he let himself indulge in the helplessness that he never showed others. His frayed emotions and his mind felt so much better after it, though.

The tears and sobs had stopped, leaving only a few hiccups behind. Tony snatched his crutches and stood up. He was at the door and up the stairs in record time.

Tony needed to see someone, to talk to someone. Clint's form on the couch was all the invitation that Tony needed.

He plopped down next to the man but instead of going into therapy mode Tony asked him one thing.

"You want to watch a movie?"

Clint smiled as he glanced at Tony.

"You got Brave?"

They both grinned at the joke but Tony asked Jarvis to put it in anyway. When Pepper returned that night from a business meeting she was shushed by Bruce and motioned to follow him.

They tiptoed into the living room and Pepper had to resist the urge to take a picture of Tony and Clint asleep on the couch.

Popcorn was spread across both of them, somehow the bowl had tipped over and dropped it contents on them. They were in the middle of the movie Finding Nemo and after muting it, Jarvis informed them of the two's Disney movie spree.

Once Pepper had covered them both up, her and Bruce retreated to the kitchen area to talk.

"How long have they been asleep?" Pepper asked.

"An hour or so. Jarvis told me when they fell asleep." Bruce replied back.

They were both happy that, even though trusting Steve was a fail, Tony actually was learning to trust Clint. Pepper would have bet it would have gone worse than Steve, since Clint was all 'secret-agent-man' but he did almost as well as Bruce.

"We'll just leave them there. I know they'll be stiff in the morning but they look so peaceful."

"Yeah. Maybe tonight Tony won't have problems sleeping." Bruce added.

The next day, Tony and Clint woke up to the smell of bacon and eggs cooking. Clint was over the couch and running to the kitchen in a second.

In the process of jumping over the couch, Clint had shoved the blanket that was on top of him in Tony's face.

"No fair!" Tony shouted when he finally got the blasted thing off. His speed was hindered also because his limbs were tangled up in his own blanket.

He had the biggest crick in his neck but that didn't stop him from grabbing his crutches and finally standing up.

When he turned around, however, the sight that met him in the kitchen made him freeze. Clint, Pepper, Bruce, Natasha, and Thor were all sitting around eating breakfast and drinking coffee.

No one even stopped or acted like anything had changed when he turned around. Tony felt himself relax, oddly enough, and he moved over to where the food was.

He leaned against the counter as he ate. There was an awkward silence going on and Tony knew it was because of him.

_Great, here goes nothing. _

"So Thor, I didn't know you like bacon and eggs. I thought pop-tarts were your morning food." Tony said and the tension in the room slowly began to dissipate.

"While pop-tarts are glorious, bacon and eggs are also good." Thor said, although with a full mouth so Tony only understood half of it.

"Right-o." Tony chirped before he continued eating.

"What about yourself, Tony? I didn't think you were ever awake at 7:30 in the morning." Natasha smirked as she said it.

_At least I don't have to initiate the conversation with her, _Tony thought as he made a big deal of swallowing and wiping his mouth.

Then he looked scathingly at Clint.

"You've been telling her my sleeping habits? We sleep together one night and suddenly every knows."

Tony had a look of betrayal on his face but Clint's was bright red. Everyone was staring at him questioningly.

"We did not sleep together, we fell asleep on the couch and just happened to be side by side." Clint said through clenched teeth.

Natasha couldn't resist this opportunity to poke fun at her partner.

"Oh really, then what happened to your pants?"

Clint looked down and saw he was only wearing his boxers and a shirt. He was clearly shocked.

"I'm sure Jarvis can give us the footage of you two last night together." She said coyly. Natasha was on a roll.

"Footage?" Clint squeaked.

"Yup! Jarvis records everything that happens in this house, even the part where you cried while we were watching Tarzan." Tony added.

By now everyone was laughing at Clint's expression. The group enjoyed a day of more Disney movies and carefree relaxation.

No one mentioned the elephant in the room: Where was Steve?

Tony kept expecting the captain to walk in at any moment to join them. When it didn't happen, Tony felt a bit of sadness grip him.

_You pushed him away, _he told himself but shoved it to the back of his mind.

By lunchtime Steve was forgotten as Tony and the rest chatted and discussed the news and such. When Natasha and Clint had to leave for a training exercise Tony was as friendly to them as he was before the nightmare.

The same could be said for Tony and Thor's trust and friendship. The Asgardian had to leave because Jane didn't like him being late for dinner.

By 5 o'clock the house was back to holding three people and the Steve problem came to the forefront of Tony's thoughts.

_I have all the time in the world. Steve and I can fix things later. There's no need to rush, _he convinced himself and put it on the back burner.

He would later wish he hadn't done so. It would have made so many things easier and less painful.

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**Please Review :)**

**Okay! I thought there was enough angst in all the other chapters so this one needed to be fun and light hearted mostly (to make up for the final one) I mean...er... no hints for the last chapter at all. **

**Thanks for all the support!**


	12. Chapter 12

**AN: Okay, last chapter. Sorry about the lateness, life sucks sometimes. I thank you all who have been kind enough to read and review this story. I hope you enjoy the last chapter! :)**

**To Guest Reviewer from chapter 11: Basically (if I'm assuming correctly that it was the last two chapters that you were having problems with) Tony goes with them to Asgard and gets hit by another one of Loki's spells. In the spell it made him believe that the team had lied and Pepper was dead. Loki tried to convince Tony to die but Tony realized the truth and (for lack of better word) broke the spell. After that he fainted and (skipping several days) was in Malibu. He still had issues with the team so they chose to fix that but Steve hadn't. Now, that's where this chapter begins. **

**Disclaimer: For the last time! I DON'T OWN THE AVENGERS! **

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3 more weeks went by in a blur. Tony and Pepper had moved back to Stark Tower in anticipation of Tony's return to his super hero duty. Bruce had obviously come along too and the rest of the Avengers moved in as well but only after Tony re-invited them.

Even Steve got to move back in but Tony only asked him because Pepper made him do it. The two heroes barley talked to each other.

Tony wouldn't even acknowledge Steve if they were in the same room and, despite Steve's attempts, Tony wouldn't make conversation.

It was a problem that was the topic of many discussions between Pepper and Tony. Bruce was also starting to mention the feud between the two but no one else dared to say anything to Tony about it. Although they did talk about it amongst themselves, they never once said a word to Tony or Steve.

Today was a new day though. A day that Tony had looking forward to for those few weeks since he woke up. The song 'I Feel Good' was playing in the background of Tony's head as he practically jumped out of bed at 8:30 am.

His leg was out of the cast and mostly healed now, only causing the occasional limp or twinge of pain. Tony took a quick shower and threw on one of his t-shirts and a pair of slacks.

He would have ran to the kitchen it he knew that certain people weren't lurking nearby.

_Act natural, _Tony told himself as he was forced to walk at a normal pace to the kitchen. Bruce was in thee at the moment sipping some of his tea.

"Morning Brucie," Tony chirped. He started grabbing a bowl and his favorite cereal as Bruce glanced at him.

"Good morning. Big day today, are you excited?"

Tony took the milk out of the fridge and poured some in the bowl, adding the cereal afterward.

"Come on Bruce, when do I get excited about anything?"

Bruce gave Tony a knowing look as the billionaire leaned against the counter and began eating his breakfast.

"Tony you got excited just yesterday when you found those green bubble bath soaps and told me you knew what my birthday present was going to be."

Tony swallowed and smiled sheepishly.

"I see your point," was all Tony said before he went back to eating.

"So are you excited or not?"

"Of course I'm excited. Maybe this will be the final step in putting it behind us."

Bruce gave him another look and sighed.

"No it won't Tony. You know very well what will end it."

Tony rolled his eyes.

"Not with that again. Steve and I can solve our problems later."

"That's what you said three weeks ago and that's what you continue to say. Why is this such an issue for you?"

Bruce was staring at him now, the tea in his hand forgotten.

"It's not an issue, I just...what if I promise I'll talk to him tomorrow? Will that satisfy you?"

"As long as you actually do it."

Tony sighed before finishing the rest of his breakfast.

"Can I go enjoy my day now?"

Bruce grinned and nodded yes.

"Hey Jarvis, is the suit ready to go?"

"Yes sir, the suit is ready and awaiting your arrival."

"Alright," Tony said as he padded over to the elevator.

He pressed the button for the penthouse and waited. Once the elevator dinged Tony couldn't contain his enthusiasm anymore.

He ran to the platform and told Jarvis to begin putting the suit on. Although the process did cause a little pain in his healing body it was worth it.

_Here we go, _Tony thought giddily.

He started the thrusters and shot out into the blue sky. The feeling of flight and being in the suit was exhilarating.

He zoomed around for a few minutes doing loops and getting the feel of things again. Today was day he finally got to be in his suit and to be Iron Man.

He could even go on a mission but there wasn't anything going on right then.

"Is everything alright sir, you're usually not this quiet." Jarvis asked.

"Yeah J, everything is fine its just been so long since I've been in this baby," Tony replied softly.

He tested maneuvers again and decided to go visit the helicarrier.

"Jarvis, where is the helicarrier located?"

"They're flying over North Carolina right now sir, the coordinates are on the screen."

" I think we should go visit."

Tony smirked and shot off, aimed south. He could have gone at a leisure pace but he wanted to push the suit to its limits.

Needles to say, they arrived at the helicarrier in record time. As Tony flew into the hangar and landed, he couldn't help but remember the other time he flew into the hangar. The time that Loki's spell had created.

_That never happened so forget about it, _he chided himself but smiled when he saw his welcoming committee.

Natasha, Clint, Thor, and even Fury were all standing there waiting for him to land. Stepping on to the platform take off the suit, Tony poked fun at the four people.

"You guys all came down here just for me? Aww how sweet."

"It's nice to see you to Stark." Fury said, a smug look covering his face.

"Did you miss me Fury?"

Fury didn't even answer him as he walked out of the room.

"So you're finally back," Clint stated.

"Yup."

Tony stepped down from the platform. They chatted for a few minutes before heading off to their separate ways. They could tell Tony needed some time alone to process the place that was once the setting of his greatest nightmare.

When they were gone Tony walked around the helicarrier and down its endless halls.

_It's good to be back,_ he thought absent-mindedly as his feet lead him on.

All of the sudden Tony realized that he was standing next to the holding cell area of the helicarrier. His eyes were instantly drawn to the one that he was held in. Memories threatened to surface but he forced in back down.

Tony turned around instead of actually stepping into the cell and began to head to the lab. That was when the alarms went off and an announcement was sent out.

"Doom bots have been seen in Manhattan, I repeat, Doom bots have been seen in Manhattan. All Avengers are to report to the hanger."

The announcements was repeated a couple more times but once was all Tony needed. He was dashing towards the hangar as soon as the first announcement ended. Everyone else, minus Bruce who was still at Stark tower, had beaten him there and was already suited up.

Even Steve was there and when he saw Tony come running in he put his foot down.

"He will not be coming with us, he is not healed completely."

Steve's tone said no to any argument, Tony just chose to ignore it.

"If we sit around and wait for me to be "completely healed" it will be like watching grass grow, besides, I was cleared today."

Steve looked ready to argue but Natasha was growing impatient.

"He's been cleared so let him come, it won't be our fault if he breaks something."

"Fine," Steve said through clenched teeth.

It wasn't that he didn't want Tony there, he just didn't want any more setbacks for Tony.

_The guy doesn't need another injury, _Steve grumbled in his head.

Time was of the essence and so Tony told them to go on ahead of him in the quinjet, he would be right behind them. By the time Clint, Natasha, Steve, and Thor were out of the hanger and flying towards the Big Apple Tony already had most of his suit on.

When it finished he blasted off and for the second time that day forced the Iron Man suit to go as fast as it could.

"Jarvis, what's our ETA?" Tony asked as he caught up to the quinjet.

"You will arrive at the destination in approximately 30 minutes. The quinjet will take approximately an hour at top speed."

Tony inwardly sighed.

_So it's going to be just me and those Doom bots for a whole half hour. I know I wanted to get back in the action but this is a bit much. _

Tony's worried thoughts were ended with the presence of the god of thunder flying up next to him. They were ahead of the quinjet and the distance between was steadily increasing.

"Man of Iron, I thought we could fly together to this glorious battle," Thor bellowed at him.

"Good idea buddy," Tony said back, feeling better about the Doom bots already.

_And Bruce in Hulk mode will be there too, _he reminded himself.

The minutes were going by quickly. Jarvis was providing footage of the destruction that was happening while they were on their way.

The Hulk was out smashing a lot of the Doom bots but there were too many for the big guy to be doing much damage to their force. Dr. Doom himself wasn't in sight but you could bet he was close by with all those bots.

"ETA?"

"Approximately three minutes."

Tony glanced at Thor and gave him a thumbs up.

"Get ready, we're almost there," Tony advised.

"I can see the smoke from here," Thor said and it was true.

The bots had caused a few cars to explode and caught some things on fire. The rest has been caused by the Hulk.

_I can do this, its just like riding a bike,_ Tony told himself as Thor and him flew into the thick of the battle.

Tony began by identifying all the Doom bots on the streets between the skyscrapers and buildings. Not quite as many as the Chitauri but pretty close.

The Hulk was doing a good job but now reinforcements had arrived. Tony and Thor split up and began destroying their own enemies. Tony was clipping off bots with his repulsors that were closest to the masses of terrified people.

"Where is Cap when you need him?" Tony muttered.

Neither him, Thor, or the Hulk were exactly qualified to direct the traffic of the scared citizens, so they did the next best thing: protection. Thor had put his com in on the flight over so Tony could talk to him.

"Thor there's three people hiding behind the yellow car to your right, make sure they can get inside that building, okay?"

The Thor grunted in reply and continued to smash his hammer into each Doom bot's metallic face.

"We've got like 20 minutes until the rest of the team arrives, let's make sure we leave none for them," Tony said, lifting his face plate up so he could tell the Hulk.

Both Thor and the Hulk seem to like this idea because they began hitting harder and working harder. Tony was zooming around in the air shooting them still when one bot barreled into him and forced him into the asphalt below.

_It's going to blast me,_ Tony realized.

He shoved it off before it could hit anything vital but the blast still nicked his arm.

"Ouch that really hurt!" Tony shouted at it before uni-beaming the Doom bot.

Tony glanced around the battlefield. Thor was holding his own against four bots, the Hulk looked like he was eating one and he, Tony, was standing there doing nothing.

That was when five Doom bots flew down and surrounded him. Each had their arms up with palms facing him.

_Uh oh, _ was all Tony could think before they all zapped him with lightning, but unlike with Thor's lightning, this stuff targeted his systems.

While his suit absorbed the electricity it was being fried.

"Not on my first day back you're not," Tony yelled shooting a red laser out from one of his gauntlets and slicing the Doom bot's heads off.

"Sir, the Doom bots are rebuilding themselves," Jarvis said and Tony felt annoyance swell up.

_Why don't the bad guys ever stay down?_

Tony shot each Doom bot with his repulsors before taking flight.

"How far out is the quinjet?"

"They have just arrived sir."

And indeed they had. Natasha was flying it while Steve was getting ready to jump out. Clint already had and was on top of a building picking off Doom bots one by one.

"What took you guys so long?" Tony asked as he flew up next to the quinjet, anticipating attacks on it before they got to land.

"Oh you know us Tony, we had to stop for ice cream," Clint said.

"Did you bring me any?"

"No, were we supposed to?"

Tony was going to shoot back a smart comeback but Steve stopped him.

"We need to make a perimeter to keep them in like with the Chitauri. Clint, make sure no bots get past the edge of the building you're on. Thor, you and the Hulk keep them away from the end of the fifth building to the right of Clint. Natasha and I will block of these two streets and Tony will stop then on the other corners."

By the time the plan was finished being told each member was heading off to do their job. The Hulk basically just smashed but the perimeter was somehow kept.

Although barely any Doom bots were being completely defeated since they continued to rebuild, the team was doing well.

"How are we going to win?" Clint asked.

His supply of arrows was slowly becoming depleted.

"We beat all of these robots and take out Dr. Doom," Natasha replied over the com.

"You make it sound so easy," Tony said as he shot another Doom bot.

"I see Dr. Doom, I'm going after him. You guys stay where you are," Steve said.

"It's Dr. Doom, you're going to need back-up," Tony argued.

_All Steve has is a frisbee and stronger punches, he can't beat Doom,_ Tony thought.

"No Tony, I said stay," Steve ordered.

Tony saw Steve run into one of the buildings and was compelled to follow.

"No can do Cap," Tony muttered before abandoning his post and flying in after Steve to the building.

Steve and Dr. Doom were already battling it out and destroying the inside of the building as they were doing it. Tony decided to insert himself into the fight by blocking a lighting blast that was meant for Steve.

"It seems not everyone listens to your orders Captain America," Dr. Doom sneered at Steve.

"Tony I-"

"-told me to stay there, I know," Tony interrupted.

"I couldn't miss this party, now could I?"

That's when Dr. Doom started to chuckle.

"I'm amused you could even pick me out from all my Doom bots," He said and Tony turned his head to look back at Steve.

"Yeah, how do you figure out it was him?" Tony asked, a feeling of dread beginning to take hold of him.

"The robots were protecting him and trying to hide the fact that he came in here. That must mean he's Dr. Doom, right."

Tony didn't even have time to say no before an explosion rocked the entire building. Tony put his focus back on Dr. Doom and powered up his uni-beam but waited to use it.

"What was that?"

Dr. Doom chuckled again devilishly.

"That was one of the ten Doom bots placed next to the support beams of this building that exploded."

Another explosion and shaking happened.

"Now there's only eight," Dr. Doom let his words sink in.

"You mean this building is going to collapse?" Steve said, eyes wide.

"Bravo, give the boy a prize," Dr. Doom said as seven explosions went off in quick succession, each getting closer and closer to where they stood.

"You wouldn't trap yourself in a collapsed building," Steve said confidently.

"You're right, I wouldn't," Dr. Doom agreed and that's when Tony knew it was another bot.

Specifically the last one that needed to explode. Tony released the uni-beam but it wasn't quite fast enough. The tenth explosion threw Tony and Steve back onto the ground.

It was the collapsing building, however, that buried them. Tony, in the precious seconds before being crushed by rubble, threw himself over Steve knowing his armor will provide more protection than the captain's uniform.

Something heavy landed on his head and he blacked out. It was only for a few minutes but it was still disorienting. Tony woke up to the sound of Steve calling his name.

"Tony, you better wake up or Pepper's going to kill me."

Tony coughed before whispering out, "Kill you? She's going to kill me first for even being out here."

Talking was extremely hard and he didn't know why.

"Oh thank God. Try not to talk, you're pinned down pretty tight by one of the support beams."

Tony coughed again but felt something wet and coppery tasting coat his throat this time. Tony finally opened his eyes and found himself on his back with the beam across the chest of his suit covering most of the arc reactor.

It was pitch black everywhere else because that was all the reactor could illuminate.

"You wouldn't happen to have a flashlight would you?" Steve asked.

"Flares," Tony whispered, the pressure on his chest constricting all breathing.

When they didn't go off Tony realized the suit was offline and so was Jarvis. Steve seemed to come to this conclusion as well.

Tony tried moving his arms and was surprised to find empty space to actually move instead of rubble. His arms did bump something that felt humanoid.

"Ow," Steve muttered.

"How are...we... not-"

Talking really was getting tougher.

"The support beam on top of you blocked a lot of the stuff. We're stuck in a small pocket. Thankfully the beam is at an angle so we have more room and air."

"For now," Tony said inaudibly.

Steve sighed.

"Why didn't you listen to me, Tony? It was a simple order: stay."

Tony asked himself why and he couldn't come up with an answer.

He finally settled for," I...don't... know."

"It's because you still don't trust me, isn't it? I've tried everything, just tell me what I'm doing wrong."

Tony felt small twinges of pain from his legs and wondered if they were buried.

_Stay on topic me, why am I so hard on Steve?_

Rubble could be heard shifting close by them.

"You..didn't..believe me," Tony felt himself say.

Blood dripped down his face as he did.

"When did I not believe you?" Steve sounded panicky.

_Probably because we're losing air fast and we're trapped under a collapsed building._

"In..the... dream."

"That wasn't me. I know I may have looked-"

"I know it wasn't you," Tony said louder, regretting it when he went into another coughing fit except this one was painful and shook his entire body.

"Then why?"

"It's like...I'm afraid ...that ...even though...you're not... him ...you could become... him," Tony whispered slowly.

Steve stayed quiet for a while after that. Tony felt his eyes start to droop when the captain spoke again.

"I know this doesn't guarantee anything but I promise I will never become him Tony."

Something clicked inside Tony's brain but before he could speak his eyes slid shut. Awareness came back sometime later, but it was characterized by a floating feeling.

It took all his strength to open his eyes and when he did he saw he was on the quinjet being flown somewhere.

He was still in his suit and lying on some kind of backboard. Next to him someone else was on another backboard.

It was Steve and he was looking at him with a sad face. Something was pulling Tony back to the abyss, probably the blood loss but he didn't know.

"Will you ever trust me again Tony?" Steve whispered to himself.

Tony, before he submitted to the darkness, decided Steve deserved an answer.

"Yes."

* * *

**Blah Please Review Blah blah**

**Finally, it's done! Woot woot! And the reason for the title finally comes out. **

**If for some odd reason you actually liked this story (and my writing) I will be posting others and I do accept prompts!**


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